Silence Is Golden
by Vernie
Summary: A short Miroku and Kagome oneshot.


_Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha!_

**Silence Is Golden**

It was cold. Frigidly cold. Kagome took a deep breath as she watched the haze which emitted from her mouth. She sighed. What she wouldn't give to be at home in her soft, warm bed right now. With pillows. Yes, pillows were indeed a _good _thing. Shippo, who had normally taken a place inside of Kagome's sleeping bag, had decided to sleep with Sango that night. Kagome smiled. Sango hadn't been quite herself the past few days after seeing her brother, Kohaku, again. Kagome was glad Shippo had decided to comfort their saddened friend. Miroku had offered to sleep with the girl, but of course she had declined the seemingly lecherous offer with a simple slap on the face.

Kagome turned over in her sleeping bag. Trying to get warm was one thing, trying to get to back to sleep in the almost freezing weather was another. The ambers of the fire had died down, and she did _not feel like collecting more timber. The girl stared towards the sky. As cold as it was, it was a beautiful night. The stars twinkled in the endlessly cloudless heavens. It was so unusually quiet that the silence was almost beautiful. The only thing that could be heard throughout the entire forest was the occasional snore that bellowed from the young kitsune's chest._

"Trouble sleeping?" a voice asked from across the campfire. Miroku stood up as he wandered to Kagome's side. His cheeks were flush from the cold weather. His hair, which was usually pulled back into a neat little tail at the base of his neck, was now loose and messily swept the top of the boy's shoulders. She nodded. "It is a bit chilly out tonight," Miroku commented, looking thoughtfully at the night sky.

"A bit would be an understatement, Miroku," Kagome said, sitting up in her sleeping bag. The monk grinned at the shivering miko as he retrieved his blanket and wrapped it around the young girl's shoulders.

"That, it would." He paused as he let out an almost silent sigh. "I do enjoy the peace, however." He glanced towards the hanyou, who was sleeping on the branch of a nearby tree. "It's not something I am able to appreciate often," he added.

Kagome nodded. She knew what he meant. Inuyasha was anything but peaceful. Easily annoyed would be the best way to put it. And Kagome wouldn't have him any other way. Miroku, however, had always been one to travel on his own before joining their group. She could understand how he valued the solitude of being alone. 

"Once Naraku has been defeated, I'm sure you'll live a very peaceful life," Kagome pointed out. "No worries." 

Miroku smiled at the thought. "Yes. I suppose so." Kagome knew that the monk had spent his entire life worrying about his own fate. Surely the thought of a laid-back life with no worries would ease his troubled mind.

"Out on your own. All by yourself." 

Miroku's face softened as he glanced at the girl. "Are you insinuating that I don't enjoy your company?"

Kagome looked at the monk thoughtfully. "You just seem like someone who prefers his privacy." 

Miroku nodded. "I also take pleasure in the company of others," he said with a smile as he reached out to clasp Kagome's hand. 

The girl grunted. "Oh yes, _that kind of company. I had almost forgotten."_

The monk smiled sheepishly. "So quick to make an assumption, Lady Kagome. What I enjoy the most is holding a woman closely on a cold and lonely night." He smiled as he pulled Kagome into his embrace. This was a move that Kagome would normally have no problem protesting against, but the warmth of the monk's embrace and the feel of the strong arms wrapped protectively around her figure felt a little too welcoming to resist. The girl blushed a little as the two settled into her sleeping bag, pulling the monk's ratty old blanket over them. "Most of all, someone to keep me warm while I sleep," he added softly.

Kagome nodded. She turned her head as she placed a small kiss on the monk's cheek. He smiled. "That sounds nice," she whispered.

The monk wrapped his arm around Kagome as he pulled her back tightly against his chest. "Mmm… it is."


End file.
